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Home My WebLink About030923 Planning Commission Meeting MinutesCITY OF PORT TOWNSEND MINUTES OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION REGULAR SESSION OF MARCH 9, 2023 CALL TO ORDER The Planning Commission met for a public hearing on March 9, 2023, in the City Council chamber at 540 Water Street. Chair Lois Stanford called the meeting to order at 6:30 pm. ROLL CALL Commissioners present at roll call were Andreas Andreadis, Samantha Bair -Jones, Bob Doyle, Rick Jahnke, Neil Nelson, Viki Sonntag, and Lois Stanford. Staff members present were Planning and Community Development Director Emma Bolin, Planning Manager Judy Surber, and Deputy City Clerk Lonnie Mickle. ACCEPTANCE OF AGENDA Agenda accepted by unanimous consensus. APPROVAL OF MINUTES — FEBRUARY 23 2022 REGULAR BUSINESS Commissioner Rick Jahnke moved to approve minutes as amended. Commissioner Bob Doyle seconded the motion. Minutes unanimously approved. GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT There were no comments for items not on the agenda. OLD BUSINESS NONE None PUBLIC HEARING Planning and Community Development Director Emma Bolin and Planning Manager Judy Surber presented a recap on the tactical infill zoning code amendments. City Building official Dave Nakagawara presented information to the Commissioners on tiny homes on wheels. Public Comments were done after the presentation: Liz Revord, Director of Housing Solution Network, spoke about the lack of affordability for the local workforce. Kim Herman, Consultant with the Housing Solution Network, recommended adding language requiring homes for low income or middle-income persons at affordable rates. Jane Armstrong, city resident, spoke of how these changes should deliver affordable housing and meet the S.E.P.A requirements. Liz Berman commented on housing for local workers and to allow tiny homes on wheels in multiple zones. Jamie Maciejewski, Executor of Habitat for Humanity, discussed the unit lot subdivision tool and to redo the affordable housing plan. Buster Farris commented about the lack of housing for employees. Carol McCreary, wanted to see Port Townsend authorize tiny homes on wheel and how to have them built locally. Mr. Ujana, talked about affordable housing for residents. The Commissioners decided to discuss page by page draft of Exhibit A: Line-In/Line- Out Ordinance. Definitions: Commissioners discussed topics about employer provided housing and household members, the number of combined townhomes, and the definition describing a guest house and detached bedrooms of a property. The group discussed inserting commissioner Sonntag's definitions for tiny houses, tiny house communities, tiny house on wheels, and unit lot subdivisions. Commissioner Bair -Jones moved for the changes to be accepted as amended and Commissioner Sonntag second. This motion passed unanimously. Residential Districts: Commissioners conversed about setback flexibility allowing a cumulative fifteen feet total. The conversation moved to editing information about accessory dwelling units. Commissioner Bair -Jones moved to accept the amended draft changes for the residential district portion. Commissioner Andreadis second. Motion passed unanimously. Mixed Use Districts. Concerns were raised about multi -family density bonuses in gross floor area with respect to floor area ratio. Commissioner Andreadis moved to remove mixed-use districts section from the packet recommendations to Council and discuss later. Commissioner Doyle second. Motion carried unanimously. Commercial Districts: Commissioner Jahnke moved to have the line item from the Manufacturing Districts for a guard's quarters and added to all zones. Commissioner Bair -Jones second. This motion carried unanimously. Public, Park, and Open Space Districts or the Rainer Street/Upper Sims Way Subarea Districts: Commissioners made no changes to these sections. Cottage Housing: Commissioners suggested changes began with removing the mentioning of the amount of people in housing in the first sentence under 17.34.010 Purpose and intent statement. Next suggestions focused on the chart under the heading of 17.34.030 Density, number of cottage housing units and minimum lot area. Requested was a change of RII and RIII zones to one dwelling per 1,500 square feet from 2,500 square feet. Other requests were to change the minimum number of cottages in RII, to be change from four to three and change the minimum lot size in RII from 10,000 square feet to 5,000 square feet. Commissioner Sonntag moved to have changes to the 17.34.030 table listed on page 13 of the Ordinance Amendments. Changes were in RII and RIII zones to one dwelling per 1,500 square feet from 2,500 square feet, reduces the minimum number of cottages in RII, from four to three, and to minimize lot size in RII from 10,000 square feet to 5,000 square feet. Commissioner Neal Nelson second. Motion carried unanimously. Richard Berg draft: Commissioners decided to keep Mr. Bergs line in-line out draft with removing the bonus lot coverage and allowing staff to add department language to add parking adjacent to units and to allow alternative site design to go through an administrative process at the request of the developer. Commissioner Rick Jahnke moved to accept Richard Berg's draft with amendments. Commissioner Andreadis seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Design Review: Commissioners made no changes to this section. Tiny Houses: Commissioner Nelson moved to accept Commissioner Sonntag's proposal in its entirety. Commissioner Bair -Jones second. Motion passed unanimously. The Commissioners decided to change to the entry of Tiny Homes to meet the egress requirements of a front porch approved by the city. Commissioner Nelson moved to accept this change and Commissioner Bair -Jones second. Motion carried unanimously. Employer -Provided Housing: The Commissioners had no changes to this section of the draft. Parking: Commissioners decided to retain original language on Table 17.72.080 language to ADU that no spaces are required for parking. Remove entire cottage home line in table 17.72.080, add cottage homes under Detached single-family home on table 17.72.080. Commissioner Jahnke moved to accept these changes and Commissioner Bair -Jones second. Motion carried 7-0 Unit Lot Subdivisions: Commissioner Nelson moved to accept the additions that were submitted by Commissioner Vicki Sonntag for unit lot subdivisions. Commissioner Andreadis seconded. Motion carried 7-0 Project Permit Application Framework: On Table 20.01.040. Commissioners wanted to add employer-provided housing under type III to Type 11 and change table 17.08.020 definition of "conditional use" to include employer housing. The Commissioner also wanted to add a definition under conditional special use minor to insert a third element for employee housing as to include new construction. Change Type II to read less than an acre from less than five acres and in Type III to change to an acre an above. Commissioner Rick Jahnke motioned to approve amended changes. Commissioner Bair -Jones seconded the motion 7-0. Commissioner Bair -Jones moved to approve all sections in Exhibit A that did not require amendments. Not including the deferred section. Commissioner Vicky Sonntag seconded. Motions carried 7-0. Findings and Conclusions and Recommendations: Commissioner Rick Jahnke moved to add his additions to the findings report. Commissioner Vicki Sonntag second. Motion carried 7-0. UPCOMING MEETINGS 3/23 REGULAR PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING 4/13 REGULAR PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING No communications COMMUNICATIONS ADJOURN With no other business to discuss, this meeting was adjourned at 10:05 pm Attest: Planning Commission Chair City Clerk's Office